The Loyalty of Samwise Gamgee
by faramir in ithilien
Summary: Frodo understands the true meaning of Sam's friendship, and Sam begins to fully realize just how much of a burden his master has taken up.
1. Where's the Ring?

DISCLAIMER: Sam and Frodo aren't my characters, and Middle Earth isn't my world, and every place else also belongs to J. R. R. Tolkien, and they are his and his alone. New Line Cinema owns some of the lines that the characters refer to. 

This story is set the night that the first movie ends, the very first night that Frodo and Sam are alone together, which is the day before the run into Gollum/Sméagol, I think. It's NOT slashy, and there's no kissing stuff either. If J.R.R. Tolkien wanted his characters to be homosexual, I'm sure he would have written them that way. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ They'd been traveling for almost a whole day without rest into the lands of Mordor. It was a difficult journey, but they were getting along well and making good time. As night fell, however, they were both beginning to feel tired. 

"Mr. Frodo, if you won't admit it, I shall. We're tired, the both of us. I can't go another step further, or I'll nod off." Sam said, the sleepiness in his voice apparent. 

Frodo agreed. "Right, Sam, we might as well." 

The two of them removed their packs. Sam pulled out two blankets and two pillows, handing Frodo one blanket and pillow. Within moments, Frodo was fast asleep. 

Sam stood up, and moved some rocks. If anyone was following them, it would be hard to see them directly. Sam grunted and panted as he pulled the large rocks around. Finally, he'd succeeded in making a nice little enclosure that would provide a bit of protection. 

Sam dropped down next to Frodo, barely able to keep his hazel eyes open. He looked over at Frodo, who was snoring softly. Sam frowned then, because there was a bit of the chain coming from Frodo's fist. One of his fingers moved back and forth, stroking the Ring. Sam sighed, and pulled the Ring from out of Frodo's grasp. Frodo grunted softly, but then began his soft snoring again. 

_Perhaps I ought to stay awake,_ Sam thought to himself. _Just to make sure he doesn't put it on. I have a bad feeling about this._

Sam propped himself up against the large rock that he'd pulled behind them. His eyelids drooped, as though sandbags were pulling them shut. Whenever they closed, he would force them open again. He crossed his arms, shook his head, scratched his nose, did anything to keep him from going to sleep. But he was tired, and he knew it. He imagined being back at the Shire, in his nice comfortable bed, sleeping peacefully. 

_It would be nice to get a full nights sleep, or even so much as a partial nights sleep._ Sam thought, yawning. _Oh, I'm so tired. Perhaps it won't hurt just to drift off......._

Sam let out another big yawn, and his head drooped, so that his chin rested on his chest. 

_I wonder what Merry and Pippin are doing?_ Sam thought, his mind beginning to cloud with sleep. _Sleeping, no doubt. Otherwise, Pippin's sneaking some food. A nice thing to do, saving Mr. Frodo like that. But an awful thing that Mr. Boromir did. I'd've wrung his neck, if I were there. Or I'd have to kick him in the shins. It's a bother being so small. Ah well, I suppose nothing....can......be........done......about....._

Sam was snoring. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

"Sam! Sam, get up now!" It was Frodo, and there was a note of panic in his voice. Sam grumbled. He was having a lovely reverie, dreaming about Rosie Cotton... 

Sam rubbed his eyes, and everything came into focus. He blinked at Frodo, who was pulling things from their bag. 

"What's happened?" Sam asked, still sleepily. 

"It's GONE!" Frodo cried. "The Ring, it's gone! I've looked everywhere, I--" 

"What is it, Mr. Frodo?" 

"Sam, empty your pockets." 

"What?!?" 

"You heard me," Frodo said, his voice growing a bit dark. Sam, more than a little terrified of his master's tone, stood up at once. But he was too afraid to move his hands to his pockets. 

"SAM! Empty your pockets now, or I shall leave you standing there like the idiot you are!" Frodo bellowed, sounding more angry and upset than he meant. He'd never yelled at Sam this way, and that was a fact that Sam knew. Slowly, still trembling, Sam put his hand into his left pocket. He drew out a bit of string, a clump of the Athelas plant, a small packet of lembas bread, some candle wax, a wick, several of the stolen and now stale biscuits from the night of Bilbo's party, a bit of parchment, a pen, a pocket-sized pair of shears, and a pocketknife. He dumped each item onto his blanket. 

"See, Mr. Frodo, I haven't got the Ring, but I'd been wondered what had happened to those biscuits." Sam smiled up at Frodo, but his smile faded when he saw the look on Frodo's face. Sam trembled again when he saw it, because he'd never seen that look on anyone's face before. It was a look of pure loathing, anger, and hate, mixed with a look of desire for the Ring. Sam almost broke into tears, but he pinched his arm and bit the inside of his lip. 

"Empty your OTHER pocket, Sam. I'm not some blockheaded Bracegirdle from Hardbottle. You won't fool me so easy. Now empty your other pockets. NOW!" Frodo's eyes blazed with anger, and Sam was afraid that if he didn't obey, Frodo might kill him. So he reached into his right pocket, and his eyes widened and the creases in his forehead went smooth, and his mouth dropped open a little. Sam removed from his pocket a Ring on a silver chain. THE Ring. Frodo's Ring. Or the Dark Lord Sauron's Ring. When Frodo saw it in Sam's hand, his face changed drastically, but still, there was anger there. 

"Sam....why?" He asked. "You TOOK it. If I'd have known...I should have let you drown! You've betrayed me!" 

"No, no, please, Mr. Frodo! I wouldn't, I never...It wasn't me! I swear it! Please, don't leave me here! I haven't a clue how to get back to the Shire!" Sam whimpered, tears forming in his eyes. Maybe it was a joke, a cruel, horrible joke that his master was playing on him. 

Frodo kept the tears in, but he was still fuming. And he wasn't joking. 

"How COULD you? Sam, I trusted you, and you betrayed me! Tricked me! You didn't come with me to protect me! You just wanted the Ring! You'd been eavesdropping when Gandalf told me about it, and you heard all about it, and wanted it for yourself, didn't you? That's why you made noise, because you wanted to be noticed. You pretended to be loyal, and waited for the right moment! You didn't attack when we were alone together, because you knew Gandalf would known why we hadn't got to Bree, and he'd be suspicious. No, you waited until he was dead, but you'd have to wait for everyone else to get out of the way. I told you what happened to Boromir! He tried to take the Ring! And when I was off by myself, you came after, and you wanted to take it, so you waited until I was sleeping and took it! You think I'm stupid, but I'm NOT. Sam, when I leave, you stay. If you follow me, I swear it, I'll kill you with my sword, I will." Frodo's anger poured out, and when he finished, he turned away, seating himself on a rock. 

Sam, still holding the Ring, had broken down. His eyes were red and puffy, and two trails came from his eyes, where the tears had fallen, and where they still streamed down. 

_Keep it, Samwise. You let him go, feeling stupid. Put it on, and run. You've got lembas bread, haven't you? Just a crumb can get you through a meal, and you can stop at Lothlorién and get more. Don't be stupid, the Ringwraiths are dead. You'll never be caught. Go back to the Shire, to your family. What do you need Frodo for? Why do you still call him Mr? He isn't in charge of you! You're just his gardener! That means nothing! He doesn't own you, and therefore you have no reason to stay with him. Go ahead and break your promise to Gandalf, Sam. Why would you still need to keep it, when the wizard is dead? For all Frodo cares, you can die too! Did you hear him, he'd kill you! You go on and go back to the Shire!_

It was what Sam's mind was telling him, but Sam's heart told him differently: 

_Samwise, you made a promise to Gandalf. You told Gandalf that you'd never leave Frodo, and you must keep your promise, especially to a wizard, even a dead one. You're not stupid, Samwise Gamgee, and you'd better stop crying. Don't listen to your mind, your true virtue lies in your heart. Samwise, don't you leave him. If you leave him, he shall be dead. There are troubles ahead, Samwise. Use your head, Samwise, but don't listen to its foulness. You must not leave him, Samwise. Would you think he would leave you? You are devoted to him, and you would certainly die for him, wouldn't you, Samwise? Trust your heart, Samwise, and do not abandon him. You would not leave him to face Mordor and the fires of Mt. Doom alone, would you?_

"No." 

Frodo turned around. "No, what?" He spat angrily. "Haven't you already caused enough trouble?" 

"NO! NO, I will NOT allow you to face Mordor and the fires of Mt. Doom by yourself. I'm going with you, Mr. Frodo. I'm not letting you go alone. I won't abandon you." 

"Sam, why do you persist? I'm leaving, and I shall tie you up, and if you manage to break loose and follow me, I shall knife you. STAY PUT!" 

"I'd made a promise to Mr. Gandalf, Mr. Frodo, sir, and I mean not to break it." 

"What's that worth, the promise of a little Hobbit to a dead wizard?" Frodo said, angrily. "You follow me, and I swear it, I'll knife you!" 

"Then I'll be knifed. I shan't leave you to go alone. I shan't leave you to face the perils alone. I shan't let you be facing the dangers ahead on your own. You'll be lost by the day's end, if you leave without me!" Sam crawled on his hands and knees over to Frodo. He crouched by the rock that Frodo sat on, watching his master. 

"Sam, you are the most stubborn hobbit there is, and I won't have it! Now you STAY HERE!" Frodo turned sharply to face Sam, and in one swift movement, he struck Sam violently. 

SILENCE   
END OF CHAPTER ONE 


	2. Understanding Each Other

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~   
Frodo dropped his hand, alarmed. Sam had never been hit before, or at least not that hard, and he certainly did not expect Frodo, out of anyone, to do it. Now, Sam truly felt like a servant to a master. He'd seen it before, when they'd been at Bree. A Man with a whip beating a Hobbit, while the Hobbit cried, 'Yes, master, I am sorry, master." Sam didn't want to think about it anymore. His face stung, and Frodo, perhaps, didn't care about him anymore. Perhaps he never had cared. 

"Sam, I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean it, honestly. You're alright, aren't you?" Frodo looked at Sam's face. Where his hand had struck, a red mark was fading. Frodo reached his hand out, but Sam shrunk back. 

"Don't touch me!" Sam cried, panicky. "It stings, and you'll make it worse!" 

"Sam, I think...I think you should give me the Ring. Give it to me." 

"NO!" 

"What?" 

"That's what's the matter with you! I can't let you have it back right now. It's gone and taken you over, and you're acting upset." 

"I'm going to be VERY upset, Sam, if you don't give me the Ring. If you put it on, you'll be found. And besides, Gandalf entrusted it to ME. It's MY task. I am the one who must cast it into Mt. Doom. I don't know why you or the others bothered coming. Doesn't do much to help, does it?" 

"Please, Mr. Frodo. I'm going with you. If you kill me, my ghost'll follow you and haunt you for ages, and when you get back home, the Gaffer'll have your head for killing me, because I'd get back to the Shire and go and tell him what you done. And I'd--" 

"Sam!" Frodo shouted. His voice echoed off the rocks and through the canyon. They both paused for a moment, but then Frodo turned back to Sam. 

"I'll tie you up with your rope, Sam. The one that the elves gave you. I'll leave you here. If the Orcs find you, they'll kill you. Or Strider or someone else finds you, that's all well and good. I just don't need your help anymore." 

"I think you do, Mr. Frodo. I think you need my help. You'll never make it alone. I care about your safety, Mr. Frodo, and you know it. You--" Sam stopped. He opened his fist and looked at the Ring, shimmering in his hand. It seemed to be calling to him. Frodo was watching Sam, too. He was turning slowly, preparing to jump on Sam, but Sam tipped his hand and dropped the Ring into the sand. 

"Keep it. But I'm still going to follow you." Sam said. He began to put the things back into his pack. Frodo got up and took the Ring, looking it over, making sure it was alright. It was fine. Frodo pocketed it. 

_What does Sam know? He acts like he's some sort of hero, or something. Or else he thinks he's my bodyguard. _Frodo thought. He looked up at Sam, who was standing still with his pack around his shoulders, watching Frodo. 

"Sam, you're not going to Mordor with me." Frodo said. 

"Who said I was? I'm going to Mordor by myself, and I just happen to be following you because you know how to get there and I don't." 

"I don't know either, I'm just following the signs. You ought to stay with Merry and Pippin. Go back. You've got no reason to stay with me. Aragorn wanted me to go alone, and so I must. Stay here." 

"No, just because you don't want me going with you, doesn't mean I can't follow you. You're going on your own quest, to destroy that Ring. I'm going on my own quest to protect you. It's simple. I'm not interfering with your quest, and you aren't interfering with mine." Sam said. Frodo had to admit, (although he never did say it out loud to anyone, especially not to Sam), that the younger Hobbit made sense. Sam WAS there to protect him, and to help him. Gandalf had appointed that task to Sam, just as the task of destroying the Ring had been appointed to him, Frodo Baggins. 

"Fine, Sam. If you want to be thickheaded and stubborn about it, you go ahead and follow me. But I'm not leaving yet. I still have to think about things." Frodo went back to his rock and sat down. Sam came over to sit by him, although cautiously, and always on guard. Sam removed his bag from his shoulders, and watched Frodo intently. 

"It's a burden, carrying this Ring. I hate it sometimes, but then I think about the Mirror and--" 

"Mirror, Mr. Frodo? What mirror?" 

"Oh, I didn't tell you about that. Remember when we were in Lothlorien? The first night we were there, Lady Galadriel showed me her Mirror. I asked what I would see if I looked it in, and she told me that there are many things that can be seen. 'Things are are, things that were, and some thing that have not yet come to pass.' That's how she put it. So I looked, and...." 

"What did you see?" Sam asked. 

"I saw...I saw things. At first, I saw nothing, but then I leaned in. I saw your faces. Yours and Merry and Pippin's. I saw Legolas and Gimli. Aragorn and Boromir, too. All of you, just looking at me sadly. It showed each of you alone, except it showed Merry and Pippin together. But you just kept looking at me when your faces flashed. Then...then I saw....I saw the Shire. I saw it in the snow, with the children running about playing, and then the snow was gone, and the Shire was burning." 

"Burning? Are you sure?" 

"Yes. Burning. And all the Hobbits were enslaved. You, I saw. You, and Merry and Pippin. And all the others. Everyone. They Ocrs had done it, and then....then, the fire grew around the scene, and it turned into a giant eye. I'd seen it before at Bree, and again when Gilmi tried to destroy the Ring at Rivendell. The Eye of Sauron, Gandalf told me." Frodo stopped. Sam was clearly shaking. 

"What did she say?" 

"Who?" 

"Lady Galadriel." 

"Oh. She said that if our quest did not succeed, that would be the fate of the Shire. She showed me HER Ring. Nenya, I think it was. She said that to be a Ringbearer was I was prepared to offer her the Ring, but then she went into a sort of trance. When she broke free, I told her that I could not do it alone. I wanted to give her the Ring, but she would not take it. She told me to bear a Ring of Power is to be alone. I still feel alone, Sam. Even when the others were with us. They don't understand what my burden means. Strider and Boromir, they'll be alright, and Legolas and Gimli, they're fine too, but what of us? Merry and Pippin and you and I. We're just little Hobbits. What can we do?" 

"We can go on. Together. If you still wish, Mr. Frodo, for me to go with you." 

There was no answer from Frodo. Sam look to the ground. 

"I didn't steal the Ring, Mr. Frodo. If you don't believe me, it's alright. But I didn't. I wouldn't ever." 

"Oh, Sam. I am sorry. You've been a great friend to me. I should have never accused you. Gandalf said the Ring has a mind of it's own. It left Gollum's cave on its own. So I think it may have put itself in your pocket. The Ring doesn't know the bonds of friendship. Ours are eternal, Sam. Don't forget it." 

"I won't, Mr. Frodo! Not at all!" 

"Then come on. We had better head off. We've wasted too much time." 

For the next ten minutes, Frodo and Sam worked together to clear the area they had slept in. Sam swept their footprints away, and Frodo buried the ashes and sticks from their fire the previous night. Finally, they were ready. Sam put his pack around his shoulders. Frodo smiled, and they headed off. 

The two young Hobbits traveled in silence for an hour or so, before Frodo spoke: 

"Sam, I'm sorry about hitting you. I supposed I just got--" 

"Carried away?" Sam finished. Frodo smiled weakly. 

"Yes, I did. And you're right. The Ring is trying to seperate us, I think. Trying to turn us on each other. If I ever see to be acting strange, I want you to hit me. Can you promise me that? I know you'll keep it. You've kept yours to Gandalf this far." 

"H-hit you? Oh, no, Mr. Frodo, I wouldn't do that!" 

"You'd tell me politely that I was acting funny, then? I'm afraid it wouldn't work. Just club me over the head or something. Not too hard, but so I know that I'm being stupid. Can you?" 

"I couldn't, really, Mr. Frodo. I'd feel awfully bad about doing it." 

"Sam, I'm giving you permission. You're not my servant anymore. In fact, you really never were." 

"Just your gardener, right Mr. Frodo?" 

"No, Sam. You're not either. You're a true friend. Can you promsie me something? If I die on this quest, will you take up the Ring and go on?" 

"I will, Mr. Frodo. I will go on and take the Ring, and I won't let anything stop me. I promise. But you're not going to die." 

"Oh? How can you be sure?" Frodo asked, smiling. 

"You're not going to die on this quest as long as Samwise Gamgee has anything to do with it! You're going to get back to the Shire, and you'll go back and live in Bag End and die an old, old, Hobbit." 

"An old, old Hobbit, just like you'll be. And you'll have a nice marriage and have lovely children." 

"Well, won't you, too, Mr. Frodo?" 

"Sam, I think I'd rather not." 

"You know, Frodo, I think you're _afraid_ of hobbit lasses! You make me embarrased by having to dance with Rosie all the time. I DO like Rosie, but how is it that you never dance?" 

"THAT is a different story, Sam. One that I'll tell you about some other day." 

And the two friends walked off in the direction of Mt. Doom, laughing together, joking. Frodo was glad Sam had come with him, and Sam was happy he'd come. As they walked, neither heard the sound of a stalker. "Where's the precious? Taken the precious! We finds them and takes the Precious, we will." 

END 


End file.
